This summer in Cooperstown, N.Y., the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum celebrates its 50th anniversary as the spiritual home of the game and as the repository of its treasures. From the essential (the Babe's bat) to the eccentric (the Babe's bowling ball), the Hall has it all. Enjoy the tour

The Hall of Fame was built in Cooperstown upon a foundation of fable, based on a letter from a madman and a dirty ball found in an attic. But from such bogus beginnings has come a nearly sacred shrine in an almost perfect setting